Mayo's Dream Team: (The best from '89 onwards.)

Started by Lar Naparka, July 24, 2008, 10:48:30 PM

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Lar Naparka

Me, the bro and a few other Mayo exiles were skulling a few pints one night.
(That doesn’t strictly apply to me as my doc has told me I can drink as much as I like as often as I like- as long as I don’t go over the two pint mark. But I’m digressing here.)
As usual, we got around to our favourite topic of conversation, picking a team to win the All Ireland this year, or indeed any year.
More or less by accident, we set about picking a composite side, going back to 1989. Obviously, the row soon started and the barman had to join in at times, some of the time giving his opinion and sometimes asking us to calm down.
We had great fun and of course the arguments will be picked up again next time we come together.
I wonder if anyone out there would like to join in to pass a bit of time as we count down to our next game.
Furboot obligingly posted the teams and their positions for the All Ireland sides from ’96 onwards on the Mayo Post Mortem and Qualifiers Thread.
I haven’t the line out for the ’89 team to hand as I write this but the following is taken from a photo on the Mayogaa site and people who remember the game will be able to pick out the prominent players.


Back, left to right: Dr. Frank Davey, Seamus Daly, Denis Kearney, Jimmy Burke, Pat Holmes, Kieran Carey, Peter Ford, Sean Maher, Mickey Feeney, Martin Carney, Raymond Dempsey, Gina Carney (Physio), Mick Devanney.
Centre: Christy O'Haire, John Prenty, Frank Noone, Dermot Flanagan, John Maughan, Eugene Lavin, Liam MacHale, Gabriel Irwin, T.J. Kilgallon, Willie
Joe Padden, Kevin Beirne, Charlie Collins, Kevin O'Toole.
Front: John O'Mahony, Brian Kilkelly, Kevin McStay, Miceal Collins, Michael J. Mullen, Jimmy Brown (Capt.), Noel Durkin, Michael Fitzmaurice, John
Finn, Anthony Finnerty, Michael Higgins.
On Ground: Greg Maher, Ronan Mee, Tomas O'Grady, Anthony McGarry.

We included the present panel of course in our selections.
I’m not listing my own selectionfor the present because:
A)   I forgot what I decided as the row was so good
B)   I want to keep this post relatively short in order to let have their say.
Anyone care to have a go?
Nil Carborundum Illegitemi

moysider

#1

I ll give it a go alright but I want to give it some thought for a day as well. Some players like Ken Mortimor, Cahill , Nallen, Mc Donald  and James Horan will be on everybody's team i expect. Midfield is a bear pit while ff wont have too many nominations.

Tell you what. I ll throw out a team to get the ball rolling but I reserve the right to edit it as undoubtedly I ll feel like revising it.

Clarke.
Mortimor.
Cahill.
Ruane.
Collins
Nallen
Butler
TJ
McHale
WJP
Danger
Horan
O Neill
Burke
Dillon

Fear ón Srath Bán

Hate to be a spoil-sports lads, but should this not be on the local pages (and don't deny it's definitely worth a discussion, especially with that fantastic team of '89 that despatched that other fantastic team in the semis  ;))
Carlsberg don't do Gombeenocracies, but by jaysus if they did...

stephenite

#3
Alright - my tuppence worth with the right to revise it when I think of who I've forgotten.

Clarke
Mortimer
Cahill
Flannagan
Finn
Nallen
Holmes
McHale
Brady
WJP (not convinced by this selection in this position, but cannot think of where to put him, maybe go for Pat Harte here)
Ciaran Mac
Horan
O'Neill
Dillon
McStay

IT's a bit rushed, there'll be changes made I'm thinking


moysider


Hmmmm. Have nt picked Brady or Colm Mac but can hardly drop anybody from 8 - 15. Not happy about it. Knew midfield was going to be a hard one. I also believe Stanton and Brogan could have been massive players if only .........  Tony Corcoran' s career ended by injury. And of course Ger Geraghty could have been around for some of this.My favorite line is my half b line. 2 wing men carved from the same rock. Good  hard rural footballers Mayo dont normally  have [and when they have dont pick, if they can help it] and badly need.

moysider

#5

Stephenite, is that Colm Mac or MacDonald your putting in at 11?

stephenite

Ah yeah - Liam is the only automatic choice for centrefield I'd say, had to go for Brady myself but I'd say I might be the only one. Just thought about my forward line, JohnCasey really shouldn't be there at all, Dillon goes to 14 , our corner forward All Star from 1985 slots in at the top of the left.

stephenite

Quote from: moysider on July 25, 2008, 12:19:52 AM


Stephenite, is that Colm Mac or MacDonald your putting in at 11.

Oh jesus it's Ciaran, Colm Mac was a grand tough athlete but his inability to kick a football consistently goes against him for this team

moysider


Know what you mean but I have great time for Colm Mac and what he gave a team. I wish we had him around now. Serious engine but management could nt recognise when he ran out of gas [ last 10 mins. and no wonder with the ground he covered, it was then most of his errors were made]. Also playing him at 11 was a gaffe. Nowhere else but in Mayo would you have your no 11 as 3rd midfielder, or as he played more usually as a sweeper, and nobody else take the 40. It contributed greatly to our defeats in 96/97 as 2 journeymen of the county game - McManus and O Flaherta were made look like all time greats.That was nt Mac s fault but instead was a grave managerial/tactical error. I prefer my 11 s to play like Greg Blaney - the best I ve seen. Ciaran Mac s role I always felt should have come with a 13/15 rather than 11 on his back. Concede the 40 and there always trouble.

RedandGreenSniper

Okay this is gonna be far from easy. I'll pick a best team rather than a best fifteen if you get my drift. Basically there are tons of midfielders that are in Mayo's best xv and you could put McHale at full-forward, WJP at 10 etc to get them in the team.
What I'm gonna do is pick a team that I would like to go out in the morning playing in a cohesive way.

Here goes

David Clarke

Kenneth Mortimer  Kevin Cahill  Keith Higgins

Peter Butler  James Nallen  Noel Connelly (captain)

Liam McHale  Willie Joe Padden

James Horan  Ciaran McDonald  Noel Durkin

Kevin O'Neill  Alan Dillon  Kevin McStay.

Three excellent man markers in the full-back line with Higgins able to follow a man out the field if its a two man inside line they are playing against. Two extremely tenacious wing-backs with Connelly being a pure inspirational leader and then Nallen in the middle, first name on the team sheet.

McHale and Padden would take on and beat arguably any other midfield pairing of the last 20 years.
A fine forward line then. Horan and Durkin well able to chip in with two or three points a game and Durkin would be a real nightmare to mark.
The inside line are three of the trickiest players I've ever seen and who better to pull the strings for such a forward line than McDanger. Could you imagine what a player he'd look like with players like this showing for his passes?!

But there's an awful lot you'd find hard to leave out. With that in mind how would this second XV get on if they took on the above team?

Peter Burke

Gary Ruane  Peter Ford  Dermot Flanagan

Pat Holmes  TJ Kilgallon  David Heaney

David Brady  Pat Fallon

Trevor Mortimer  Colm McManamon  Ronan McGarrity

Conor Mortimer  John Casey  Maurice Sheridan.

It'd be a good game!
Mayo for Sam! Just don't ask me for a year

Bod Mor

Peter Burke
Kenneth Mortimer
Kevin Cahill
Dermot Flanagan
Noel Connelly
James Nallen
TJ Kilgallon
Willie Joe Padden
Liam McHale
Colm McManamon
Ciarán McDonald
James Horan
Kevin O'Neill
John Casey
Conor Mortimer
Ó chuir mé 'mo cheann é ní stopfaidh mé choíche
Go seasfaidh mé thíos i lár Chondae Mhaigh Eo.

Barney

feck you Lar Naparka - what is it about Mayo people and picking teams. I met a fellow Mayo man in Barcelona last December. We were out for the night. A basin of drink, and 5 o'clock in the morning we were heading for the scratcher. He turns to me and says before we finish up we have to pick the Mayo team for 2008. I got to bed at 8!

Anyway reserving the right to edit, it is early, and this is a quick stab (and i'll try and set up a poll where we can vote for the Mayo Posters team 89 - Date)



Peter Burke


Kenneth Mortimer                      Peter Forde               Fergal Costello

Peter Butler                              Jimmy Nallen              Noel Connelly

Liam McHale                              David Brady

James Horan                             Ciaran Mc                   Alan Dillon

Conor Mort                               Jimmy Burke               Kevin O'Neill

I've taken players on the merits of their entire career with the green and red and not just their performances from 1989.

                 





brokencrossbar1

Is Cora Staunton not worth a place in there somewhere :P

Lar Naparka

Quote from: brokencrossbar1 on July 25, 2008, 08:43:56 AM
Is Cora Staunton not worth a place in there somewhere :P
She'd definitely be considered if we were playing Armagh. I think she'd run the jocks off Francie Bellew. ;D
Nil Carborundum Illegitemi

the Deel Rover

Quote from: Lar Naparka on July 25, 2008, 09:02:41 AM
Quote from: brokencrossbar1 on July 25, 2008, 08:43:56 AM
Is Cora Staunton not worth a place in there somewhere :P
She'd definitely be considered if we were playing Armagh. I think she'd run the jocks off Francie Bellew. ;D

Ye lar cora would take Francie allright
Crossmolina Deel Rovers
All Ireland Club Champions 2001